As the guard opened the gate and we drove in, I could hear Chizbat and his excited bark. Maybe we’ll come back to Chizbat later, maybe not.
It’s been 9 months now that I’ve known Federico since his posting as Mexican Ambassador to India last September 2019. While he is busy handling Indo-Mexican relations and all manner of current affairs, one thing I’ve come to know about him over the course of time was his interest in birds. Shhhhh! Don’t tell! It’s a fun break from the important work of diplomacy.
In the midst of the Covid 19 lockdown, I came up with this idea of backyard birding at the residence of the Mexican Ambassador. Why not? The classic quiet farmhouse residence, set in 2.5 acres surrounded by beautiful, lush green foliage all far away from the Delhi traffic and all you hear are bird calls while relaxing by the pool (that was before the lockdown LOL!). So, I texted to see if H.E. would be interested to explore his garden birds under the guidance of none other than the not-so-renowned birder ‘Robin’. Oh! I also did manage to throw in the idea of breakfast as birds are more active in the morning. So, H.E. was kind enough (after a bit of cajoling) to invite me to join him for breakfast at 8 am, Friday the 3rd to be followed by birding in the backyard.
I had asked Siri to set my alarm for 7 am so I could have my coffee and get there on time which I did, sharp at 8AM. That’s when I rang his doorbell and was promptly greeted by H.E. himself and seated at table. Of course, Chizbat joined us. Chizbat is Frederico’s most loyal and stunning Border Collie dog. A most playful creature full of fun and a bit of mischief.
Gill, the butler, walked in and wished both of us good morning. He was super happy to see me again. You see Gill and I have a connection. And if you want to know the story you may invite me for brunch for a bit of gossip. Gill brought us a glass of water and fresh mosambi (sweet lime) juice. Then the rest of the plates started to come to the table one after the other…Mexican scrambled eggs, black beans, variety of salsas, fresh homemade tortillas and other goodies. A good one hour of eating and talking and I actually forgot I was there for birding not breakfasting LOL. And off went from my angelic mouth ‘Mimosa please’… oops slip of the tongue… I meant birdwatching time.
So, we set forth armed with my Nikon D810 with Nikkor 300mm lens and our first sighting was two Red-wattled Lapwing enjoying the garden water sprinklers. We started wandering around the garden spotting the Indian Mynas, heard the call of the Greater Coucal (Crow Pheasant), spotted the Jungle Babblers poking the lawn, heard the repertoire of melodious calls from Oriental Magpie that’s me ‘Robin’, and the Black-rumped Flameback were like paparazzi flies whooshing in and out, never to be seen again.
Red-wattled Lapwing 
Red-wattled Lapwing 
Brown-headed Barbet 
Rufous Treepie 
Jungle Babbler 
Indian Myna 
Indian White-eye 
Indian Myna 
Asian Koel 
Shikra
We sat near the pool, spotting the Brown-Headed Barbet playing hide & seek. That’s when the sharp two note call caught my attention. So, I jumped up and quickly ran toward the Peepal tree where the sound was coming from and there she was sitting, Shikra, a small bird of prey. I thought perhaps she was nesting so I took a quick shot and decided not to disturb her.
It was around 10.30 ish when we both looked at each other, soaked in sweat (Humidity 58%) waiting for one of us to say it out loud ‘Let’s call it a morning’… eventually we both agreed. We walked back to the breakfast room to collect my bag. The ever-accommodating Gill offered a refreshing drink of Agua de Jamaica (aka hibiscus water) before I bided farewell to everyone especially Chizbat.
You see birding was just a clever excuse…the plan was to enjoy a Mexican breakfast with H.E. And so now I start plotting my next excuse for Brunch Birding ;). Namaste / Buenos dias amigos!!!
Robindro Saikhom
robin@serenejourneys.co
www.serenejourneys.co
Robin is the founder of Serene Journeys, an lgbtq+ owned & operated travel company based in Delhi & Bangkok, a travel curator & a travel photographer, exploring the beauty of South and Southeast Asia. This blog is my unsolicited personal opinion.
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Birds sighted (S) or calls heard (CH):
- Asian Koel (S)
- Black Kite (S)
- Black-rumped Flameback (S)
- Brown-headed Barbet (S)
- Coppersmith Barbet (CH)
- Common Tailorbird (CH)
- Greater Coucal (CH)
- Indian Myna (S)
- Indian White-eye (S)
- Jungle Babbler (S)
- Oriental Magpie-Robin (S)
- Purple Sunbird (CH)
- Indian Peafowl (CH)
- Red-wattled Lapwing (S)
- Rose-ringed Parakeet (S)
- Rufous Treepie (S)
- Shikra (S)
Serene Journeys 